1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to fluid connectors and, more particularly, to fluid tubing connectors.
2. Background Description
Tubing connectors for threadless pipe, tubing, conduit and the like are well known and have been widely used in the automotive industry. A variety of terminating fastener fittings used as means to connect pipe, tubing, conduit and the like employ male pilot as a means for providing positive alignment of the mating fittings during their interconnection. Typically, a complete fastener fitting is formed of a male fitting and a female fitting and, in the majority of applications, a seal. A male land surface typically found in a terminating fastener fitting is either machined integral to the male tubing, formed, or formed and machined integral to the pipe or tube being terminated.
However, these known tubing connectors have disadvantages. In one example of a tubing connector wherein the male pilot is machined integral to the male fastener fitting from a one-piece block, the amount of material removed during the machining operation approaches the finish weight of the fitting in its final machine configuration. In another tubing connector configuration in which the male pilot is formed or formed and machined integral to the tube or conduit, the forming and machining operations, although well established in high volume manufacturing processes, are hampered by material variations that add considerable cost to the male fastener fitting. In all cases where tubes or conduits with dissimilar inside diameters are being joined, elaborate and costly end forming sequences are required for the dissimilar tubes.
Assembility is always an issue in using the male fastener fittings currently available. Sufficient clearances are required between the male pilots and the female land surfaces for assembly to be possible. Such clearances allow for imprecise alignment of the male and female fittings that could result in a no-build condition. The imprecise alignment also causes cross threading and crushed pilots in the fittings.
In all cases where elastomer seals are used in conjunction with the terminating fastener fittings, the opportunity for automated assembly of the seal is hampered by the vast number of configurations of tubing assemblies employing the terminated fastener fittings and the seal. As such, assembly efficiency of the seals is reduced and leaks resulting from missing or damaged seals is highly probable.
Thus, it would be desirable to provide a tubing connector which overcomes the problems encountered in the prior art tubing connectors described above. It would also be desirable to provide a tubing connector having a male pilot which can be constructed in an inexpensive manner without excessive material waste. It would also be desirable to provide a tubing connector having a male pilot which provides precise alignment of the female and male fittings and, also, enables a standard or fairly small number of standard size seals to be employed in the connectors.
The present invention is a pilot insert seal for use in tube connectors or fittings formed of two separate fitting elements which are joined together at common mating or land surfaces. Each of the fittings has at least one bore extending therethrough which is alignable with the bore in the opposed, mating fitting.
The pilot insert seal of the present invention includes a discrete body having first and second ends, a through bore extending between the first and second ends of the body, and means for fixedly mounting the pilot insert in the bore of one of the two fittings wherein one end of the pilot insert body extends outward from one fitting for guiding the insertion of the bore in the other fitting into alignment with the bore in the first fitting.
Seal means, mounted on the body for sealingly engaging one of the two fittings when the pilot insert is mounted in one of the bores in one of the two fittings. A groove is formed on an exterior of the body between the first and second ends of the body. The groove is preferably an annular groove. The seal means comprises an annular seal element mounted in the groove and extending completely about the entire exterior circumference of the body. Preferably, the seal means is mounted intermediate between first and second ends of the body.
The mounting means includes an annular projection formed on and extending outward from the body. The annular projection is preferably disposed adjacent to one of the first and second ends of the body.
A plurality of grooves can be spacedly mounted between the first and second ends of the body, each receiving a separate seal means.
In an alternate embodiment, the through bore extending through the body has a reduced inner diameter between the first and second ends of the body to form an orifice or restrictor.
A fitting assembly for joining two members in fluid flow communication is also disclosed. The fluid assembly includes first and second fittings having mating surfaces. A bore extends through each of the first and second fittings; a fluid conduit is mounted in the bore of each of the first and second fittings. A discrete pilot insert means is separably mounted in the bore of one of the first and second fittings, for guiding the alignment of the bores in the first and second fittings when the mating surfaces of the first and second fittings are brought into engagement. A seal is carried on the body and engageable with the mating surfaces of the first and second fittings.
The pilot insert seal of the present invention provides a low cost substitute for male pilots which are integrally machined from or formed in tube connectors or fittings. The discrete pilot insert seal enables a connector to be provided with a male pilot without the excess material waste associated with machining the male pilot integral to the fitting as in previously devised fittings. The pilot insert seal of the present invention also has better dimensional characteristics than pilots which are formed or formed and machined integral with the fittings to provide better alignment and assembility of the fittings at the moment sealing forces are applied to the elastomer seals carried on the fitting.
The present pilot insert seal also provides unique opportunity to combine small parts, such as elastomer seals, into an assembly with the pilot insert using automated methods. This further reduces the overall cost of the fitting assembly as well as reducing the incident of damage or missing seals. With better dimensional characteristics provided by the pilot insert seal, precise alignment of the bores in the two mating fittings is enhanced.